


bathroom

by astralpenguin



Series: lead me to a future [6]
Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Maze (Maze Runner), Childhood Friends, Coming Out, Crushes, Eventual Smut, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Mario Kart, Party, Reconciliation, Sharing a Bed, Sleepovers, Some Humor, Underage Drinking, Unhappy Ending, can be read as a standalone, if you're american that is, or rather they've just finished it, technically this is a prequel, they're 18, thomas is dumb sometimes but wbk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-01
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-07-05 11:16:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15862527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/astralpenguin/pseuds/astralpenguin
Summary: Thomas went to stand. “Sorry, I didn’t realise you were here. I can go.”“You don’t have to.”Thomas froze halfway up. He sent Newt a questioning look.Newt laughed softly. “You’re hiding from the crowds, right? Same here. So don’t leave on my account. Might as well keep each other company.”Thomas decides to hide from a party in the bathroom, and ends up confronted with his childhood best friend. They talk. Things happen.can be read as a standalone





	bathroom

**Author's Note:**

> The Party™ from the first timeline that's referenced so often in the main fic
> 
> i've said that this can be read as a standalone, because it mostly can!! if you haven't read the main fic there's just a couple of things you should bear in mind while reading this:
> 
> 1\. 'revival' is the name that thomas has given to an inconvenient and involuntary superpower, but it doesn't affect this story  
> 2\. minho was their friend when they were kids, but he was murdered when they were eleven
> 
> i've never written anything like this before, so go easy on me lmao

Exams were finally fucking over.

Thomas was sure that he’d never felt more relieved in his entire life. And that was including every single Revival he’d ever been forced to live through.

But he was _done_ with school. It was over. He didn’t have to worry about it _at all_ until results day, and that wasn’t for a good few months.

He was _free._

As he was clearing out the last of what he had stored in his locker, somebody tapped him on the shoulder.

He turned to see someone he barely talked to.

Not that he ever talked to anyone, to be honest.

“Yeah Aris? What is it?”

He smiled. “I was just wondering if you’re gonna go to Sonya’s party later.”

“Sonya’s what?”

“Didn’t you hear? Sonya’s dad’s away on a work trip, and her mum’s gone with him. _And_ they gave her actual permission to have an end of exams party!”

Thomas winced. “That was a mistake.”

Aris grinned. “I know, right? Anyway, it should be fun. You gonna go?”

Thomas thought about it for a few seconds. It was really sweet of Aris to ask him, but they weren’t friends. More like friendly acquaintances. They got along, but it didn’t run any deeper than that. In fact, that’s how Thomas felt about practically everyone he went to school with. He wasn’t friends with any of them. He didn’t go out of his way to talk to anyone for a moment longer than he had to, and he was certain that he wouldn’t be talking to any of them ever again after today. Why would he? He hadn’t been truly friends with anyone since he was 11 years old.

So he might as _well_ go to this party. It could work as a sort of symbolic goodbye to this chapter of his life. After today, he wouldn’t have to think about any of these people ever again. Or anything that had happened.

He could put up with a party for that.

He nodded. “I’ll be there. What time?”

 

Thomas had been wrong. So, _so_ wrong.

He’d been to parties like this before, so he already knew that he didn’t enjoy them. The music was too loud, there wasn’t enough space, and there was _far_ too much alcohol around. Everyone was drinking. Him included, to be fair. He’d grabbed a cup of who knows what just to keep his hands busy, but he was taking small sips at a sensible pace. Everyone else appeared to be downing as much as they could as quickly as possible like it was going out of style.

What was the point of celebrating their exams ending if they were going to drink so much that they couldn’t even remember it? Thomas didn’t understand.

And he didn’t understand why he’d agreed to come.

 _Symbolic goodbye?_ Talk about a dumb idea. He shouldn’t have bothered.

A glance at his watch told him that it was far too early for him to be leaving, although he seriously considered it. Maybe nobody would notice him go?

“Hey there.”

Thomas hadn’t been expecting anyone else to come into the kitchen, and looked up in surprise.

“Uh, hi?”

The boy pointed at Thomas. “Hiding? Why?”

Thomas wracked his brain for what this boy’s name could possibly be. They’d gone to the same school, for fuck’s sake! It was even possible that they’d been going to the same school since they were five years old, so Thomas had no excuse for not knowing it.

“I said,” sighed the boy, “Hiding! Why? What’samatter?”

The boy stepped forwards, invading Thomas’ personal space. His words were slurring together, and Thomas could smell the alcohol on his breath.

Thomas tried to back up as discreetly as he could, but only managed a single step before hitting the counter. “Crowds aren’t really my thing.”

The boy started giggling. It was a sharp, high pitched sound, and Thomas wanted nothing more than for it to stop.

 _Winston._ The drunk boy was Winston. He wasn’t someone that Thomas had known since they were five, but it had still taken him way too long to remember his name.

If that didn’t tell him how little this place, and the people in it, meant to him anymore, then he didn’t know what would.

He drained what was left of his drink and put the empty cup on the counter behind him. “Sorry,” he mumbled, and pushed past Winston out of the kitchen. He quickly made his way through the crowd, not stopping to talk to anyone. Most people didn’t try to talk to him, so this wasn’t particularly difficult. He sidestepped a few couples who’d decided that the hallway was a good place for a makeout session, dimly registering the fact that Sonya and Harriet were included in that category, and dashed up the stairs.

He just needed to find a quiet place to hide until at least 10 pm. That was a reasonable time to leave, right? He only needed to last - he checked his watch again - one and a bit more hours. He could manage that. That was doable.

He scanned the doors.

He didn’t want to hide in anyone’s bedroom. Hiding in Sonya’s parents’ room would be weird, he had a strong feeling that Sonya would be wanting her own to be available before too long, and there was no way in hell he was going to seek refuge in Newt’s.

What if he was in there?

It had been so long since they’d been friends, Thomas didn’t want to put either of them through such a painfully awkward situation. They hadn’t even spoken since the last time they’d been sat next to each other in class. It had probably been English? Maybe? It didn’t really matter, it was a few years ago at this point. They hadn’t spoken to each other _voluntarily_ for even longer, and at this point Newt was simply someone that it was best he avoid completely, for both their sakes.

So, if the bedrooms were out, then that left him with the option of either sitting out on the landing, or hiding in the bathroom.

Thomas took a moment to reflect. Was he truly the kind of person who was willing to lock himself inside the bathroom at a party, just so he could avoid having to deal with other people?

Yes. Yes he was.

The door was slightly ajar, indicating that it wasn’t occupied. Thomas took that as permission, and stepped inside, locking the door behind him. He breathed a deep sigh of relief and pressed his back against the closed door, sinking to the floor.

He was safe.

“Thomas?”

Or not.

He opened his eyes with a start, focusing in on the direction that the voice had come from.

He internally berated himself for not being more aware of his surroundings. He’d been so fixated on getting away from the crowds of the party that he hadn’t bothered to actually check that this room was empty. He’d just assumed that it was. Which evidently wasn’t the case.

And of course the person that he’d managed to lock himself in a room with was the person he’d _just told himself_ that he wanted to avoid most of all.

Newt was, for some reason, sitting inside the bathtub, his legs hanging over the side. His eyes were wide, like he hadn’t been expecting to see him there.

Thomas went to stand. “Sorry, I didn’t realise you were here. I can go.”

“You don’t have to.”

Thomas froze halfway up. He sent Newt a questioning look.

Newt laughed softly. “You’re hiding from the crowds, right? Same here. So don’t leave on my account. Might as well keep each other company.”

Slowly, Thomas nodded, and lowered himself to the ground.

Someone downstairs turned the volume up.

“So,” said Thomas, staring down at his hands as he twiddled his thumbs.

“So,” repeated Newt.

“How do you think your exams went?”

Newt tutted. “Well enough. You?”

Thomas smiled weakly, but didn’t look up. “Mostly fine.”

“Ah well, mostly’s pretty good.”

Thomas shrugged. He didn’t have a good response to that. Or any response at all.

A full minute passed, before Newt said, “Look, Thomas, I-”

_THUMP!_

The jolt against the locked door sent Thomas jumping away from it. “What the hell?”

A girl’s voice came through. “Is someone in there?”

Scowling, Thomas pushed himself to his feet. He opened his mouth to respond.

“Nah, Sonne,” came Newt’s voice from behind him, “the lock just _decided_ that it wasn’t gettin’ enough action for its likin’, and took it upon itself to seal off the room so it’d feel useful.”

Sonya grumbled something about Newt being an arsehole and stomped off.

Thomas turned to face Newt, who was grinning.

“Well, Tommy, it looks like you got here just in time, or I’d have had to put up with my probably-drunk sister barging in and being bloody annoying.”

The smile on Newt’s face fell slightly, as if he’d realised or remembered something that ruined his mood.

Unsure what could’ve caused that, Thomas smiled at him in a way that he hoped was reassuring. “Why are you hiding in here? Shouldn’t you be out there, having fun?”

Newt raised an eyebrow. “Really Thomas? Aren’t you being kinda hypocritical?”

Thomas laughed as he sank back down to the floor. “Touche. But why are you hiding _here?_ Your room’s just down the hall.”

“Mum asked me to make sure the bathroom didn’t get trashed, so I’m guarding it. Nobody wants to come in here to vomit or shag or whatever if it meant there’d be someone watching them do it. Which is a buggin’ relief, I’m telling you.”

Thomas nodded. “Okay, that makes sense, but what if someone actually needs the loo?”

Newt shrugged. “They can use the one downstairs. As far as I know, nobody’s guarding that one.”

“And what about _your_ room? What if people decide they wanna go in there?”

Thomas could’ve sworn a look of pride crossed Newt’s face. “I got a giant roll of black paper and covered the door frame with it, so if you open the door you can just see the paper. It makes sober people understand that they should keep out, and drunk people get confused enough that they leave it alone.”

“That’s actually a really good idea!”

Newt laughed. “I started doing it about a year ago. It’s never failed.”

“I’m glad to see you’re still the smart one.”

Newt scoffed. “If I was smart I’d have been doing it since the first time Sonya decided that inviting everyone she’s ever met over for a party was a good idea.”

“Well, I know _I_ wouldn’t have thought of it at all.”

“That’s because _you_ don’t have an annoyingly outgoing twin. You’d never have any reason to come up with something like that, so of course you wouldn’t.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

They lapsed into silence again. This time it didn’t feel anywhere near as oppressive as it had before. Every few seconds, Thomas’ eyes would dart from whatever it was he was looking at and back towards Newt. Four times out of five, he caught Newt doing the same.

Eventually, he had to force himself not to burst out laughing. “What’cha keep looking at me for?”

Newt rolled his eyes. “I could ask you the same thing.”

“There’s not much else to look at, is there?”

“And there’s your answer.” Newt grinned. “You gonna stay on the floor for the whole evening, or what?”

Thomas shrugged. “I might. Haven’t decided yet.”

Newt tilted his head to one side. “You could join me in here.”

“What?”

“There’s plenty of room. And trust me, sitting fully clothed in a bathtub just for the hell of it is an important life experience. I wouldn’t want you to miss out.”

Dubiously, Thomas got to his feet. He slipped his shoes off and carefully got into the bath, mimicking Newt’s position as he sat beside him.

“I’m not getting what’s so special about this.”

“C’mon Thomas. It’s the same kinda feeling you get when you sit on a counter in the kitchen.”

“Hmm, I never understood the appeal of that.”

Newt gasped. “I’m sorry, we can’t be friends.”

Thomas gave up on not laughing. “I don’t like cheese all that much either.”

Newt shook his head in mock-disgust, failing at disguising his own laughter. “You’re a terrible human being.”

“Yup,” said Thomas.

For those few moments, it was like nothing had ever changed. Like he and Newt had been friends this whole time. Like nothing had ever happened to drive them apart.

With that realisation came a sharp reminder of what exactly _had_ happened.

Thomas’ laughter died away, and Newt’s soon followed. The silence still wasn’t oppressive, but it was a lot less pleasant than the last one.

Eventually, Thomas spoke. “Are we, though?”

“Are we what?”

“Friends.”

Thomas didn’t look, so didn’t know what kind of face Newt was making. He didn’t want to see if he’d upset him by saying that.

“We were,” said Newt. “And clearly we get along well enough. I don’t see any reason why we can’t be.”

Thomas focused his gaze on the door. “This is probably the most we’ve spoken in years.”

“Yeah, probably,” said Newt. “But that’s both of our fault. And Alby and Siggy’s. We all stopped talking to each other, so don’t say that like it was your fault, or because of any one person, because it wasn’t.”

“I know that, but-”

“You know what I think?” Newt said, cutting Thomas off. “I think that if Minho could see what we’ve all been like for the last seven years, he’d be about ready to throttle us by now.”

Thomas tried to suppress the wince that triggered at the mention of that name, but was unsuccessful.

“And that, too. Do you really think that Min’d be happy with us not even being able to talk about him? Because I don’t.”

“I don’t disagree, Newt. But I _can’t._ He was our best friend. It’s just not the same without him here. If it were either of us, the same thing would’ve happened.”

“Thomas,” said Newt, placing a hand on Thomas’ arm.

The corners of Thomas’ mouth crept upwards. “You used to call me Tommy.”

“Am I still allowed to?”

Thomas looked up at him.

Newt was staring at where his hand was resting near Thomas’ elbow, so he wasn’t looking Thomas in the eye. His expression was kept carefully blank, and his voice casual, but Thomas could tell that it was an act.

“Of course you are. You always have been.”

“Oh,” said Newt. “It’s just, I wasn’t sure, because we weren’t talking, and nicknames aren’t really something that-”

“Newt,” said Thomas, interrupting his rambling. “It’s okay. You can call me whatever you like.”

“Okay,” Newt breathed. He looked up, finally catching Thomas’ eye, and grinned. “This means we have to be friends though.”

Thomas rolled his eyes. “That sounds like something a 12 year old would say.”

“Yeah, well, we haven’t spoken by choice since before then, so it’s perfectly reasonable that I’d be talking like one.”

“Is it though?”

Newt nodded firmly. “It is.”

Thomas held up his hands in surrender, smile still in place. “Okay boss, I’ll take your word for it.”

“As you should.” Newt’s own smile didn’t diminish as he said, “It’s a little known fact that I’m always right about everything.”

Thomas rolled his eyes. “Sonya must get annoyed with you, then.”

“Of course she does, but she’s my sister, it’s practically law that we’re constantly annoyed with each other.”

Thomas nodded. “True.”

Newt shifted so he was leaning back more in the bath. “So, tell me, what’s going on down there?”

“What, downstairs?” He waited for Newt’s nod. “I dunno, I came up here pretty quickly.”

“C’mon Tommy, you must’ve seen something. I’m trying to be nosy here, least you could do is help me out.”

Thomas laughed. “People were dancing, Winston was really drunk, and the hallway by the stairs seems to have become The Place To Be for couples.”

“Including Harriet and Sonya?”

“Yup. Hang on, didn’t she try and get in here a few minutes ago?”

Newt nodded. “She’ll have been wanting to find somewhere secluded. I’m sure that she’ll cope with having to drag her girlfriend the few extra steps it takes to get to her bedroom, rather than settling for the bathroom.”

“I didn’t know they were together.”

Newt shrugged. “It only happened a few weeks ago. Not that they haven’t been head over heels for each other for years. I can’t speak for Harriet, but I’m pretty sure that Sonya’s been in love with her at least since that zoo trip in Year Seven. Even if she didn’t realise it until more recently.”

Thomas shifted so that he was leaning backwards in the same way that Newt was. “I haven’t really paid any attention to anyone’s relationships for the last few years. I don’t know who’s dating who, or if there’s drama anywhere, or anything.”

Newt raised an eyebrow. “That’s pretty impressive.”

“It’s really not. It’s the opposite of impressive.”

“You must’ve heard something at some point.”

“You’re severely underestimating my ability to ignore the world around me. And not everyone has a twin to force them to stay updated on everything that’s going on.”

Newt laughed. “Okay, true. If it weren’t for Sonya talking my ears off every day I’d probably be in a similar position to you. Well, except for that thing that I was involved in.”

Thomas snapped his head round to face Newt. “There was drama about you?”

“Yes.”

“Spill.”

Newt let out a nervous laugh and rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s really not that interesting.”

“I literally do not care how boring it is. I still want to know.”

Newt took a deep breath. “It’s nothing, really, it’s just...” he trailed off. His eyes broke away from Thomas’ and he stared at his knees. “Valentine’s Day this year. I found out that Dan was cheating on me with Alejandra.”

“What an asshole.”

Newt shrugged, not looking up. “Most of the school was on his side.”

“Then most of the school are assholes too.”

“You don’t even know the full story.”

“He cheated on you. What else is there to know?”

Newt shrugged again. “You don’t mind, then?”

Thomas didn’t know what Newt meant. “I don’t mind what?”

“That I’m gay.”

“Newt, why the fuck would I mind that? For starters, I’m bi, so it wouldn’t even make _sense_ for me to have an issue with it. Also, have people been giving you shit for it? Is that why people at school were siding with Dan? I’ll fight them for you.”

Newt finally looked up, cracking a smile. “Wow Tommy, it’s our first conversation in literal years and you’re already offering to fight for my honour.”

“Of course I am,” said Thomas. “Who wouldn’t be willing to fight for you?”

“Dan, apparently.”

“Well he can go fuck himself.”

Newt’s smiled widened. “Oh, I’m pretty sure he did. Alejandra didn’t realise that he was actually supposed to be dating me at the time, and swiftly broke up with him once she heard. Not homophobia, just outrage. None of it was her fault, she was really sorry about the whole thing.”

Thomas shook his head in disbelief. “That’s something, at least. Still, I had no idea Dan was such a dick.”

Newt shrugged to dismiss it. “Anyway,” he said, “what about you? You had any girlfriends or boyfriends? I wanna hear about all of them.”

Thomas had to think for a few seconds, which he supposed spoke volumes about his relationship history. “I dated Izzy for a couple of weeks when we were 15. That’s pretty much it.”

“No boys?”

“Newt, you are the first non-straight guy I’ve met in my entire life.”

“You’ve really only had one partner though? Ever?”

Thomas nodded. “Afraid so.”

Newt shook his head. “That can’t be right.”

“What do you mean?”

Thomas could’ve sworn that Newt went a little red as he said, “You’re you.”

“So?”

“So, I can guarantee that more than just that one person has liked you, and it doesn’t make sense to me that you haven’t been in any other relationships. Have you liked anyone else?”

“Sure,” said Thomas, “I’ve liked a few. But if anyone other than Izzy’s ever had a crush on me, they haven’t told me, so I’ve just gotta assume they haven’t, you know?”

Newt opened his mouth, but closed it again without saying anything. Then, he said, “They definitely have.”

Thomas shrugged. “Maybe. I doubt it, though.”

Again, Newt looked like he wanted to say something. Whatever it was, though, he bit back on it, instead saying, “Are you hungry? I’m kinda hungry.”

Thomas decided to let him get away with changing the subject. “I guess? I don’t think I’m hungry enough to be willing to go back down there.”

Newt pulled his legs back over the edge of the bath towards him and stood. “What d’ya fancy?”

“You don’t have to-”

Newt waved dismissively as he climbed out of the bath. “I need to stretch my legs anyway, I was gettin’ a bit uncomfortable.”

“Okay, what is there?”

“Anything in the fridge, and I think Sonya was talking about ordering in pizza at some point, but I have no idea if she ever got around to it.”

“I’ll take some pizza if there’s any, otherwise I’m good with whatever.”

“Good that, Tommy. You guard the bathroom while I’m gone.”

With that, Newt strode over to the door, unlocked it, stepped through, and closed it firmly behind him.

Thomas hadn’t been expecting to see or talk to Newt tonight, or ever again. But the conversation had flowed easily, and Thomas felt comfortable with him. In fact, now that he thought about it, he probably felt more comfortable with Newt than he had with anyone in a very long time.

He wasn’t entirely sure what he was going to do with that information.

Newt returned with pizza. Thomas held both plates as Newt climbed back into the bath, and then handed one back to him.

As they ate, they talked about random things. They had seven years to catch up on, after all, so they weren’t in any danger of running out of stories to tell.

More than once, Thomas found himself wanting to tell Newt about the Revivals. But he knew that there was no way Newt would believe him, and he didn’t want to jeopardise what was building between them, so he didn’t mention it.

Eventually, the noise from downstairs began to die down a little.

“You got the time?” asked Newt.

Thomas checked his watch. 10 pm. He showed Newt, who nodded once he’d read it.

“The loudest people are probably going to start heading out around about now.”

“Head out?”

“They’ll wanna go to an actual club or something. The music here’s gotta be quieter now, because of the neighbours.”

“You seem to know their routine quite well.”

Newt rolled his eyes. “ _Someone_ always has to make sure Sonya gets home alright.”

“Is she heading out tonight?”

Newt shook his head. “Doubt it. She’s too busy with Harriet, I’ll bet.”

“Even so, we should probably check, just to be safe.”

Newt sighed, and stood. He reached out a hand and pulled Thomas to his feet. “My back’s starting to ache, so I can’t imagine how yours must be faring. Best you stand up too.”

Now that Thomas was standing, he was very aware that he hadn’t been sitting in a great position. He rubbed his back as he stepped out of the bath. “Yeah,” he said, “that’s probably a good idea.”

He followed Newt out of the bathroom and crossed the hall to Sonya’s bedroom. The door was shut, just like it had been when Thomas had come up the stairs.

Without hesitation, Newt knocked loudly on the door three times. “You in there?” he called out.

“GO _AWAY_ NEWT!”

Newt turned to Thomas, grinning. “I’ll take that as a yes. She’s with Harriet, she’s not going anywhere.”

“So, are we heading back into the bathroom?”

Newt tilted his head as he thought. Thomas paid no attention to how adorable it was. “We could,” he said, “but also I have some chocolate in my room that we could share.”

“Chocolate sounds nice,” said Thomas, “but doesn’t the bathroom need guarding?”

“The people most likely to trash it have either left or are in the process of leaving. We’re good.”

Thomas nodded. “Okay,” he said. “Lead me to the chocolate.”

Thomas had almost forgotten about the way that Newt had blocked off his room. When Newt opened the door, Thomas was faced with a giant rectangle of blackness, and he was very confused. Then it clicked, and he had to fight hard not to burst out laughing.

Newt must’ve heard him snigger though, as he turned around and winked. “You didn’t believe me, did ya?”

“No, I believed you, I just...” he trailed off, not having any real defense.

Newt laughed, turned back around, and reached to the top of the doorframe. He gently unpeeled the tape holding the large sheet of paper in place. He then unpeeled the tape holding it near the bottom, and rolled the paper up into a tube.

With nothing left obstructing them, the boys entered the room.

Thomas hadn’t been in Newt’s room since a few days after the funeral. He, Newt, Alby, and Siggy had all met up here. The aim had been to talk about it, to clear the air, to _try_ and salvage what they could of their group’s friendship without Minho around.

Needless to say, they’d failed. There hadn’t been anything to say to each other.

The room had changed a lot since then.

The bed was different, bigger, its sheets a deep forest green. In a corner of the room was a small TV, with a messy stack of video games leaning against it. There was a bookshelf in another corner, and next to that was a desk that couldn’t actually be seen beneath the papers scattered on top of it. Thomas assumed that they were revision notes. He also assumed that the pile of clothes next to the desk was hiding a chair. The walls were covered with sketches and drawings of all different subjects and sizes. When they were kids, Newt had been constantly drawing in a sketchbook that he kept with him at all times, so Thomas wasn’t surprised to see that he’d continued doing this up to now.

Newt walked over to the chest of drawers opposite the bed and opened the top drawer. He grabbed something and pushed it shut again.

“Here you go,” he said, holding a bar of chocolate out towards Thomas.

“Why do you hide it here?” asked Thomas. “Why not put it in the kitchen, with the rest of the food?”

Newt laughed and sat on the end of his bed. “I have a sibling.”

“Of course,” said Thomas. “Silly me.”

“Are you just gonna stand there?”

Thomas looked around himself. He hadn’t moved from a few paces in from the door. “Where should I sit? Your chair’s got a pile of clothes on it.”

Newt shuffled to the side, freeing up space next to him on the end of the bed.

Thomas sat and opened the chocolate bar. He broke it in half and gave Newt back some.

“What now?” said Thomas in between mouthfuls.

Newt shrugged. “I have games?”

“What games?”

Newt stood and crossed over to the stack of games next to the TV. He shuffled through them, quickly discarding most of them without asking Thomas’ opinion. Before long, he stopped at a certain box and looked up. “What’s your opinion on Mario Kart?”

Thomas sighed. “I am terrible at Mario Kart.”

“So am I.” Newt grinned. “Wanna be terrible at it together?”

Something about Newt’s smile made Thomas much more willing to spend his time playing a game he was bad at than he otherwise would’ve been. He knew this to be true, and as he agreed to play, he didn’t bother trying to tell himself otherwise. Instead, he let himself enjoy the way that Newt’s face lit up as he set about putting the disc in and locating the controllers.

One had ended up under the bookshelf for some reason. Newt insisted that Thomas not question it.

Thomas hadn’t been lying when he’d said that he was bad at Mario Kart. Thankfully, neither had Newt. Even when they put the AI on the easiest difficulty, they both kept coming in the last two slots of every race. No amount of bonuses could prevent it.

As for who came out on top, just between the two of them? That changed with each race, because they were equally as terrible as each other. Thomas eventually decided that he’d have significantly more fun if he went around the tracks backwards. His score tanked, but because it put him permanently in last he was always given the best bonuses. He zapped the course with lightning a lot.

Newt pushed him off the bed after the third time he did it. Thomas was entirely unapologetic, and continued playing from the floor.

He rested his head against Newt’s knee. Newt didn’t seem to mind.

They talked as they played. Where their bathroom conversation had been centered on the past, on their lack of friendships and how their families drove them mad sometimes, now the conversation turned towards the future. Thomas hadn’t yet applied to university, and wasn’t sure if he was going to go at all. Newt was going to study art at a school in the nearby city, but had no clue what he was going to do after that.

“Sonya’s known what she wants to do since we were five. _Five!_ And here I am, still without a clue.”

“I’m almost a hundred percent sure that your sister is in the minority. Most people don’t have their lives planned out that early.”

“Maybe, but I should still have some idea by now.”

Thomas pressed his head harder onto Newt’s knee for a moment in an attempt to imitate pushing or jabbing him. “Remember that you’ve got more of a plan than I do, so any attempt to criticise yourself on this goes double for me. Stop it.”

Newt grumbled, but dropped the subject.

Eventually, they got bored of Mario Kart and turned it off. Thomas was allowed back onto the bed, and they both lay down and continued talking. Their conversation turned towards various films and TV shows, and their opinions on them. Newt pointed at some pieces of art on his wall, describing the mythical creatures he’d depicted in them, and where they were from. This led to Thomas enthusiastically appreciating Newt’s art, while Newt tried - and failed - not to turn as red as a tomato as he listened to the compliments. All of his attempts to downplay them were met with fierce refusal from Thomas, who wouldn’t hear of any of it.

It was during one such impassioned rant about the shading on a dragon that Thomas flung his arm out in front of him, and caught sight of his watch.

It was half past midnight.

 _“Shit,”_ he said, leaping to his feet.

Newt’s face was immediately filled with concern. “What’s wrong?”

“I was supposed to be home by now.”

“What’s the time?”

“After midnight.”

The corners of Newt’s mouth quirked upwards. “What are you, Cinderella?”

“Ha ha,” Thomas deadpanned. “Seriously though, my mum’s gonna be really worried. She said that if I was gonna stay out later than 11 then I should call her, and I haven’t!”

“There’s a phone out on the landing that you can use.”

“Really?” said Thomas.

Newt nodded. “Just don’t be too loud. I wouldn’t be surprised if Sonya’s trying to sleep by now, and if that’s the case you wouldn’t wanna be the one to wake her.”

“Shouldn’t you be telling that to the people downstairs?”

Newt shrugged. “The rest will be leaving by now. Nobody’s supposed to be staying over, they were told this quite clearly.” He smiled. “Harriet doesn’t count.”

“Okay,” said Thomas, “I’m just gonna go use your phone.”

The first thing he noticed upon leaving Newt’s room was the the music from downstairs had stopped. The next thing he noticed was that Newt had been correct. He looked down the stairs to see people leaving in small groups. He stood and watched as the last group stepped out, a smiling Aris closing the door behind him.

Although Thomas wouldn’t be surprised if there were still one or two really drunk people downstairs somewhere, it looked like most other people were gone.

He grabbed the phone out of its cradle and put in his home number.

His mother picked up on the second ring.

“Hey mum, it’s me.”

“Thomas,” she said, sounding stern, “do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Yeah, I lost track of time, sorry. I can start heading home now.”

She sighed. “I’d rather come and get you, but there’s been an accident and the roads have been closed.”

“I can walk, it’s okay.”

“I know you’ll most likely be fine, but I can’t help but worry about what could happen if you do.”

Newt tapped Thomas’ shoulder. _‘All okay?’_ he mouthed.

Thomas shrugged and refocused on the conversation with his mother. “You don’t need to worry, I’ll be fine.”

“Oh,” said Newt aloud. “If your mum’s worried about you getting home so late, you could always stay here.”

“Huh?” said Thomas.

“Did you say something, kiddo?” asked his mother.

“Uh,” Thomas turned back to the phone. “Newt’s offering for me to stay here tonight, seeing as it’s so late.”

“Newt? It’s been a while since I heard _that_ name.”

Thomas shrugged, then realised his mother couldn’t see him. “We’ve been catching up.”

His mother hummed in thought. “Okay,” she finally said, “you can stay there for tonight. Stay safe, you hear?”

Thomas rolled his eyes, now glad and fully aware that she couldn’t see him. “Yes mum.”

“See you tomorrow, Thomas.”

“Bye,” he said.

He put the phone down.

“So?” asked Newt.

Thomas turned to face him and nodded. “She said I can stay here.” He paused, then said, “I thought you said people weren’t supposed to be staying over tonight?”

“You don’t count either.”

With that, Newt turned away and walked back into his room, leaving Thomas no choice but to follow.

“I don’t count?” he said as he closed the door behind him. “What does that mean?”

Newt, who was already sitting back down on the end of his bed, shrugged. “Just that you don’t count.”

Thomas had no idea how to respond to that. He _still_ didn’t know what Newt meant by it. Repeating his previous statement in lieu of an answer hadn’t made his initial meaning any clearer. He felt that it was significant, somehow, but the exact nature of that significance escaped him.

Newt smirked up at him. “I see you’ve gone back to standing at the door.”

Thomas shook his head slightly to clear the confusion from his mind. “Sorry.”

Newt let out a small laugh. “It’s fine, don’t worry. But you don’t need to do that. You can just sit wherever, you don’t need permission.”

Thomas shrugged helplessly. “It’s polite,” he mumbled.

Newt shot to his feet and crossed over to the chest of drawers that he’d previously got the chocolate out from. This time, he opened one that was about midway down and pulled something out.

He threw it at Thomas’ head.

“Do you want to borrow some shorts as well?”

Thomas pulled the fabric off of his head and shook it out to see that it was a plain t-shirt. He looked up at Newt with an expression he was sure radiated confusion.

Newt rolled his eyes. “You need something to sleep in, Tommy. Because sleeping in jeans and a button up is not ideal, and I highly doubt you have anything with you that you could change into. So. T-shirt. And do you want some shorts as well?”

Normally, Thomas wouldn’t bother with shorts or pyjama bottoms during the summer. His bedroom could get very warm, and it just wasn’t worth it. But he figured that he shouldn’t do that if he was going to be sleeping in the same room as someone else.

The same room as Newt.

“Yeah, I’ll take the shorts.”

This time, he was prepared for the clothing that went flying towards his head, and he was able to catch it.

“I’ll go get changed,” said Thomas, and he left the room.

The first thing he saw upon re-entering the bathroom was that he’d left his shoes in the middle of the floor. He kicked them out of the way and changed into the borrowed clothes.

Once he was done, he caught sight of himself in the mirror.

The outfit wasn’t anything special. The t-shirt was a little worn, making Thomas think that it was one that Newt had used for sleeping in before. It was big enough that it would be big on Newt, but it fit Thomas well. The shorts, Thomas was pretty sure, were actual pyjama shorts, meaning that they were really comfortable to wear. But objectively the outfit wasn’t much to look at.

So why was he thinking that it looked good on him?

He sighed, and shook his head. His brain wasn’t making any sense. Which, to be fair, was just another day in the life of Thomas Cooper. Deciding to let it go, he reached for the handle on the door to let himself out, but froze with his hand halfway there.

He’d become comfortable with Newt instantly. He’d attributed most of it to their former friendship being as strong as it was, coupled with enough time that Minho’s absence didn’t feel like a physical barrier anymore, along with similar life experiences and interests. And he didn’t doubt that that was all true. That wasn’t the point that his mind seemed intent on making.

He turned back around to face the mirror again, taking the time to reflect.

He hadn’t paid much attention to Newt over the years. Or, at least, he’d thought that he hadn’t. But he _had_ often thought that you’d have to be blind not to notice how attractive Newt had become. He’d be lying if he said that Newt was the first person that made him realise he liked boys too, but he was definitely largely responsible for helping to consolidate that realisation.

But that had been a couple of years ago. It didn’t mean anything now. Newt didn’t even know about it, thank fuck. _That_ wasn’t a conversation that Thomas was willing to have.

The more important thing to consider was whether or not he _still_ thought was Newt hot?

Oh.

The answer was yes.

Goddammit.

God fucking _dammit._

This was exactly why Thomas tried not to think too hard about things. Avoiding situations like this. Because now what was going to happen? Newt was hot. Really, _really,_ hot. Not only that, he was kind and funny and talented and humble and he and Thomas had clicked as if they’d never been apart. And _now_ Thomas was going to have to try and sleep in the same room as him after having acknowledged this.

_Newt liked boys too._

Thomas stepped up to the sink and turned on the cold water, splashing his face with it. It would do as a substitute for actually washing his face. He could always do that once he got home the next day. Splashing himself with cold water also helped him drag himself out of his own brain.

Newt might be gay, but he’d shown no sign of liking Thomas that Thomas could detect. He was happy to be around Thomas because he was happy to have his old best friend back. That was it. There hadn’t been anything more to any of their interactions. They’d been talking, and catching up, and playing Mario Kart, and sharing chocolate, and there hadn’t been any romantic subtext to any of it. Just two friends finally reconciling.

Thomas needed to get a grip.

This mini-crush would probably go away within a few days. They often did. That was part of the reason why his relationship with Izzy ended so quickly. His attraction to her simply hadn’t lasted very long. Neither had hers to him.

He steadfastly ignored the fact that he’d thought that Newt was hot for much longer than he had anyone else. That didn’t mean anything.

He patted his face dry on the towel by the sink, picked up his discarded clothes and shoes from off the floor, and left the room.

Newt was standing with his back to the door when Thomas re-entered the bedroom, having already gotten changed himself. Thomas closed the door and dropped his things onto the ground behind it, definitely not looking at Newt’s ass as he did so.

Okay. Maybe that was a lie.

Thankfully, Newt was in the process of turning around to face him, meaning that Thomas couldn’t linger on it for too long.

Newt’s eyes widened when he caught sight of Thomas. He looked Thomas up and down a couple of times. He coughed.

“You okay?” asked Thomas.

“Yep,” said Newt. His voice sounded a little strange. Thomas couldn’t put his finger on why that might be.

Newt cleared his throat loudly. “Do you wanna go to bed now? Or stay up a bit longer?”

Thomas shrugged. “Mum won’t be happy if I stay up all night, but I don’t really mind.”

Newt nodded. “Okay, well, the bed’s yours.” He turned away, and continued speaking. “I just need to get-”

“Newt, what do you mean, the bed’s mine? Where are you gonna sleep?”

Newt didn’t turn to face him, still looking around his room for something. “I’ve got a sleeping bag somewhere that I can use.”

Thomas shook his head. “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s your bed. I’m not gonna kick you out of it. I’ll take the sleeping bag.”

This time, Newt did face him. “It’s fine, Tommy. Really.”

“No it isn’t.”

Newt sighed. “I’d feel a lot better if you just took the bed.”

“If you make yourself sleep on the floor, I promise I won’t sleep at all, and there’ll have been no point.”

The two boys glared at each other, both unwilling to back down.

Newt broke first.

“Maybe...” he said, trailing off and looking at the bed.

“Maybe what?”

“Maybe,” he said, a bit firmer this time, but Thomas could still hear the hesitation in his voice, “we could share?”

“Share?”

Newt nodded. “Yeah. I mean, there’s enough room. It’s not like either of us will be in any danger of falling out.”

Thomas thought about it for a few moments.

It was the most logical solution. They both wanted the other to take the bed, so by sharing they’d both be getting what they wanted. And Newt was right, there was plenty of room. They’d be a bit close, yes, but it wasn’t like they’d be pressed together or anything.

 _That_ was a train of thought that needed abandoning right the fuck now.

“Okay,” said Thomas. “Sharing sounds alright to me.”

Newt smiled. “And going back to the earlier thing, I normally go to bed around now. We don’t have to, but-”

Thomas laughed. “No, I’m the same, don’t worry.”

Newt joined in. “Good that.”

“So, now?”

“Sounds fine to me.”

They both approached the bed, only to catch each other’s eyes and start laughing again. Thomas was well aware that he was being ridiculous, and this didn’t have to be awkward, and they just needed to be a bit more mature so they could actually get into the bed, but he couldn’t help it.

He was going to be in bed with Newt.

Granted, not _in bed_ in bed. But. In bed.

With Newt.

It wasn’t even like they hadn’t shared a bed before. It was just that they’d been 10 years old last time that had happened.

And Thomas hadn’t been attracted to Newt then.

Oh well, Newt looked like he was having just as much trouble taking the situation seriously as Thomas was. At least he wasn’t alone.

Finally, they somehow managed to get into the bed. Newt turned on the lamp that was on his bedside table, and reached up to hit the switch for the room’s main light.

The only source of light in the room was now the lamp situated behind Newt. The room didn’t get too dark, though, because the lamp was a lot brighter than Thomas thought it had any right to be for its size.

He wasn’t complaining. More light in the room meant that he could keep looking at Newt. And also, the way that it shone from behind him made it look a bit like his blond hair was glowing, almost as if it were a halo.

_Fucking stop it._

“So,” said Newt, breaking Thomas from his thoughts, “seeing as we’re having our own little impromptu sleepover, what do people normally do on those?”

Thomas raised an eyebrow. “I thought you’d have had more experience with those than me.”

“If by experience you mean that I was in the same house as Sonya’s friends whenever _they_ had one here, then yes. Otherwise, no.”

“Well,” said Thomas, “I’m not sure, but I _think_ that sleepovers tend to include staying up late, playing games or watching films, eating stuff that’s really bad for you, and spilling all your deepest and darkest secrets.”

Newt hummed in thought. “We’ve done most of those, I’d say. We can probably declare this sleepover a success.”

“Nothing we’ve talked about have exactly been secrets, though. Got any to share?”

Newt’s smiled slipped from his face and his eyes focused on something distant. “No,” he said.

Thomas didn’t believe him, but didn’t want to push him on whatever it was he was thinking about. Surely, he could bring him round to happier topics.

But before he could think of something to say, Newt said, “Have you?”

Thomas was pretending that the Revivals didn’t exist for the night, and they weren’t something he was sure he could explain anyway. Other than that, there was obviously this crush that had sprung up, mostly - but not entirely - out of the blue. But there was no way he was going to talk about that, either.

But, it gave him an idea.

“I think a specific sleepover discussion topic is crushes.”

Newt tutted. “Didn’t we already talk about that though?”

“Briefly. Without specifics.” Thomas grinned. “So now I’m asking specifics.”

“You’re asking if I like anyone right now?”

“Yup.”

“And what if I asked you the same thing?”

Thomas was aware that he had not thought this idea through in the slightest.

He shrugged, hoping that it came across as being casual. “I don’t have anything to hide.”

Newt thought for a moment, then said, “Quiz me.”

“Huh?”

“Quiz me. Ask me questions. I can only say yes or no.”

“About your crush?”

“If you like.”

“Okay,” said Thomas. “Do you have a crush on someone?”

“Yes.”

“A boy?”

Newt rolled his eyes, but smiled. “Isn’t that obvious?”

“Aren’t you supposed to only be saying yes or no?”

His smile widened. “Yes.”

“Is that an answer to that question, or the one before.”

“Yes.”

“To both?”

“ _Yes,_ Tommy.”

Newt sounded playfully exasperated, and Thomas couldn’t help but laugh.

“Okay, okay,” he said, “is it someone I’m likely to have met?”

“Yes.”

“Does he... Wait, no. _Did_ he go to our school?”

“Yes.”

“In our year?”

“Yes.”

“Is he older than you?”

“No.”

“So he’s younger?”

Newt didn’t respond to that one verbally, instead just rolling his eyes at Thomas again.

Thomas chuckled. “Fair enough. Let me see...” he trailed off, trying to think of another question he could ask. “Is he blond?”

“No.”

“Brunet?”

“Yes.”

“Did you take any of the same subjects over the last couple of years?”

“No.” Before Thomas could ask another question, Newt tapped his shoulder. “No, wait, sorry, yes.”

“Different classes?”

Newt nodded.

Newt had spent the last two years specifically studying English, Art, and History. Thomas tried to think of which of those subjects had had more than one class. It couldn’t be Art. There’d only been one class for that, and it had been small, _and_ Newt had been the only boy.

“Was that subject History?”

“No.”

“So it was English?”

“Tommy, you’re very lucky that I haven’t given you a question limit, because that would’ve been the third one you’d have wasted.”

“Just wanted to be sure.”

Thomas himself had taken English. And he was brunet. And he was younger than Newt. All of Newt’s answers so far could’ve been referring to him.

Thomas’ heartbeat picked up at this realisation, but he tried to ignore it. There were plenty of other people that also fit those descriptions. Like Aris, for example.

Thomas didn’t want to think about Newt potentially having a crush on Aris.

“Do you get along with this person?”

“I do, yes.”

That hadn’t narrowed it down at all. Newt got along with most people without any issues. It was part of what Thomas liked about him.

 _Wow,_ his brain needed to shut up. Here he was trying to figure out who Newt had a crush on, like friends do, and all he could think about was his _own_ crush on him. Not helpful.

“If you’re out of questions,” said Newt, “maybe I could ask you some?”

Thomas shrugged. “Go ahead, but I might pick back up at some point.”

“Fair enough.” Newt looked away for a moment as he thought, then returned his gaze and said, “First off, _do_ you have a crush on someone?”

“Yes.”

An expression flickered across Newt’s face, but it was gone before Thomas could even begin to decipher it.

“Is it a girl?”

“No.”

“Is it a boy?”

“Didn’t you _just_ say-”

“This person not being a girl doesn’t necessarily make them a boy.”

Thomas smiled. Newt was just the sort of person who’d make that distinction. Thomas didn’t know of anyone else that he could be sure would. “Yes, they’re a boy. As far as I know, anyway.”

“Do I know him?”

“Yes.”

“Did he go to our school?”

“Also yes.”

Newt laughed. “We’re good at this, aren’t we? We’re both dancing around actually throwing some names out there, and instead going through everything else we can think of.”

“You haven’t actually asked me much yet.”

“I know,” said Newt, “but I’m cutting myself off early, else I’ll just end up asking all the same things as you.”

“So, you’re saying we should start guessing names?”

Newt hummed in thought and rolled onto his back. “Are you okay with me actually knowing who you like?”

“Are you?”

Newt shrugged. “I’m the one who suggested we do this, aren’t I? It’d be pretty silly of me to do that, and not be okay with telling you the answer.”

Thomas considered this for a few seconds.

Newt didn’t seem like the type who’d judge him for his crush, or who’d get upset. If Thomas told him how he felt, Newt would be kind about it, and let him down gently. It wasn’t like he was gonna kick him out of the bed. Newt wouldn’t do that. Thomas would probably be able to make a joke out of it, anyway. _‘You’re hot and gay and feelings happened, but don’t worry they’ll probably be gone soon.’_ One day it could be something that they thought back on and laughed about. Their rekindled friendship was not at risk here.

Thomas couldn’t bring himself to entertain the notion that Newt’s crush might actually be on him. That sounded a lot like wishful thinking on his part.

“I’m okay with you knowing,” Thomas finally said. “You’re just not allowed to laugh at me about it. Not tonight, anyway.”

Newt’s mouth curved up into a smile, his gaze staying fixed on his ceiling. “Noted. No laughing at Tommy until the morning.”

Thomas took hold of the duvet and pulled it sharply off of Newt.

“Hey! Give it back!”

“Meanies don’t get the duvet, that’s the rule.”

Newt tried to pull the duvet back over himself, but Thomas was stronger, easily able to keep it away from him.

“Tommy, c’mon! Give it back! It’s my bed!” Newt laughed all the while, pulling harder and harder with a smile plastered on his face.

“Nope!” said Thomas. “This belongs to me now.”

Suddenly, Newt let go of the duvet. Thomas fell back onto the mattress with a jolt.

“I guess, if you won’t _share_ the duvet, like a nice person, then I’ll be forced to come up with a compromise.”

“Compromise? Like what?”

Newt shrugged, but the smirk on his face told Thomas that he did have an idea.

“What is it already?”

Newt dropped so he was lying down. Except, he wasn’t over on his side of the bed like he’d been before. Instead, he was lying right up against Thomas, his head resting against Thomas’ shoulder.

“There,” he said, pulling the duvet up over the both of them. “Now you _have_ to share.”

Thomas was convinced that his heart stopped beating for a second. He was so caught up in the fact that Newt was _pressed up against him oh God how was he supposed to cope_ that it took him longer than it should’ve done to realise that Newt had, effectively, taken his half of the duvet back by doing so.

Thomas didn’t know if the little shit had any idea of what kind of effect he was having.

“So,” said Newt, “a boy that I’d know who went to our school. Winston?”

Thomas couldn’t help but laugh. “Absolutely not. I mean, he _might_ have been chatting me up earlier? Or about to start? I’m not sure, he was drunk, and possibly about three seconds away from throwing up on my shoes. But no, it’s not Winston.”

He shifted so that he could put his arm around Newt. If they were going to cuddle, they might as well do it properly.

Even if he knew it wasn’t going to last much longer.

Thomas cleared his throat and said. “What about Aris? For you?”

Newt lifted his head up so he could look Thomas in the eyes. He sighed and shook his head. “No, Tommy,” he said. “It’s not Aris. He’s one of Sonya’s friends, anyway. If I liked him I’d have suppressed it to nothing _long_ ago, and there’s no way I’d be willing to admit it to you.”

Thomas lifted his free arm and made a helpless gesture. “I don’t know who else it could be.”

“There aren’t many people it could be.”

“Yeah, probably. Doesn’t mean I can think of them.”

Newt tutted. “I refuse to believe that you are this dumb.”

“Hey! I’m not dumb!”

“Oblivious, then. C’mon Tommy, who fits the description? Use that brain of yours, I know you’ve got one.”

Thomas was _sure_ that there were other brunet boys, who were younger than Newt but still in their year at school, who took English, but weren’t in Newt’s class. There had to be.

But he was starting to suspect-

No, rather, he was hoping-

He was probably wrong. He’d already accepted that. If he asked, and got it over with, then he could go back to failing at remembering everyone they’d been going to school with for the last however many years.

It’d be over quickly.

“I don’t wanna sound conceited or anything...”

Newt waited for him to continue. After a few seconds of silence, he prompted Thomas with, “But?”

“Is it me?”

Newt didn’t respond at first. He lowered his head back down onto Thomas’ shoulder and sighed. Then, he said, “Yeah, Tommy. It’s you.”

Thomas froze.

That was not the response that he’d been expecting.

Not in the slightest.

Holy shit.

So.

What was he going to do now? Did he tell him? He wanted to. He _so_ wanted to. But all of his mental preparation for that conversation had been with rejection in mind. He hadn’t let himself consider for a _second_ that those feelings might be returned, and now he didn’t know what to do.

Newt’s humourless laugh snapped Thomas back to reality. “Sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable, mate. I promise I can keep my hands to myself.”

“Newt,” said Thomas. He heard his own voice shaking, and inwardly cursed himself. Newt was probably panicking right now, and his shaking voice could be so easily misinterpreted as anger. “Newt, look at me,” he tried again. He thought that that attempt at speaking had gone a little better, but he couldn’t say for sure.

Newt lifted his head up and looked at Thomas, face carefully blank. He nodded for Thomas to say whatever it was he wanted to.

Except Thomas had _no idea what to say._

So he did the only thing he could think of.

He brought the arm that had been around Newt up to the back of Newt’s head and pulled him down towards him.

The kiss was short, just a quick press of lips against each other’s before breaking off again. Thomas relaxed his hold on the back of Newt’s head so he could easily pull away if he wanted to.

He didn’t pull away.

Thomas flicked his eyes up away from Newt’s mouth to his eyes. They were wide, dark, but also Newt’s brow had formed a small frown. Thomas had to fight not to be distracted by how adorable it was. He wanted to kiss him again.

After a few seconds of silence, Newt whispered, “What was that for?”

“Ask me about mine,” said Thomas.

“Is it me?”

“Yup.”

“Oh,” said Newt. “I didn’t thin- I mean, I had no-” He sighed and gently pressed his forehead against Thomas’. “How long?” he eventually forced out.

“Honestly? Noticed it today. Haven’t had the chance to fully examine when exactly it developed yet. What about you?”

Newt shook his head. He then pulled his forehead away from Thomas’ just enough that he was able to kiss him again.

Thomas didn’t care very much about knowing the answer to that question anyway, so he was more than happy to allow Newt to distract him. This kiss wasn’t short like the first one had been. Now that they both knew that they wanted this, that this was okay, they were free to kiss each other for much longer.

They had all the time in the world.

Newt’s teeth gently grazed Thomas’ bottom lip, and Thomas opened his mouth, allowing Newt further access, and something shifted. Newt placed a hand down on the mattress and pushed himself up a bit, not breaking contact with Thomas as he did so. Thomas’ breath caught as he felt Newt climb on top of him. Newt must’ve heard it, or felt it, because he laughed into the kiss.

“It’s just more comfortable up here, don’t get excited,” Newt mumbled onto Thomas’ lips.

“But what if I wanna get excited?” Thomas said in response between kisses.

Newt smiled against him, breaking off the kiss, but not moving away. “Do you want to?”

Thomas only had to think about it for a moment.

“Yes.”

Newt recaptured Thomas’ lips with his own, but there was something else there, now. Something deeper. Newt barely gave Thomas any chances to breathe.

Thomas was drowning, and he didn’t care.

One of Newt’s hands was in his hair, holding him firmly, but gently, being careful not to pull. The other hand was on Thomas’ shoulder, pushing him down onto the mattress. Thomas had placed both of his hands on Newt’s waist, and they were slowly trailing downwards to rest on his hips.

Newt ground down and Thomas gasped.

Newt pulled away just far enough to ask, “This okay?”

“Shut up,” Thomas breathed as he reached a hand up to grab Newt’s t-shirt, pulling him back down.

A few seconds passed - or, at least, Thomas _thought_ they were seconds, but it could’ve just as easily been hours - before Newt made a fist holding the fabric of Thomas’ t-shirt and pulled him upright. Newt adjusted how he was sitting on Thomas’ lap and managed to press down on Thomas again.

Thomas couldn’t tell if that time had been intentional or not.

Newt’s grip left Thomas’ hair, and Thomas tried his best not to whine at its loss. A small bubble of laughter from Newt told him that he hadn’t been entirely successful.

Newt tapped Thomas’ arms. “Up,” he said.

Thomas lifted his arms and let Newt pull the t-shirt up and over his head.

He didn’t see where Newt threw it afterwards. He was far too busy focusing on the fact that Newt was pressing kisses down his jaw, his neck, his collarbone. Thomas felt the hot press of Newt’s tongue just below that point and shuddered.

Newt turned his focus back to Thomas’ mouth, but only managed to get a peck in before Thomas said, “Don’t stop.”

Newt smiled. “Wasn’t plannin’ on it.”

Thomas fumbled with the bottom of Newt’s t-shirt, unsure if he was allowed to remove it. Newt made that decision for him and took it off himself.

Thomas leaned back a little, just far enough that he could look at Newt. Thomas hadn’t seen Newt shirtless for years, and back then he hadn’t really _looked_ at him, or paid him any attention.

He was beautiful.

His skin looked almost golden in the light. Thomas couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and feel the smooth, faint definition of abs. Newt shivered under Thomas’ touch.

Thomas didn’t know how long Newt let him do that for, but when he stopped him part of Thomas felt like it had come far too soon.

However, Newt’s method of stopping him was by placing his hand flat on Thomas’ chest, pushing back down onto the bed, and hovering over him, so Thomas couldn’t say that he minded too much.

Newt kissed Thomas’ neck. Then he moved down to his collarbone. Then he kissed down his chest, his stomach, before arriving at his hips.

He looked up at Thomas’ face, a question in his eyes.

“Please,” was all Thomas could bring himself to say.

Newt’s finger slipped under the band of Thomas’ borrowed shorts. Under the band of Thomas’ boxers. He gently tugged at them. Thomas planted his feet on the mattress and lifted his hips off the bed so that Newt would have an easier time getting them off. Once the shorts and boxers were halfway down his legs, he relaxed, and lifted his feet up a little so that they could be taken off entirely.

They got stuck on his left foot. Newt and Thomas both ended up giggling as Thomas had to kick his leg a couple of times to get them off, only to end up flinging them across the room.

Once that was taken care of, Newt leaned back down and pressed a kiss on Thomas’ inner thigh.

Thomas hadn’t ever been completely naked in front of another person before. His brief relationship with Izzy hadn’t gone further than a couple of make-out sessions by the school gates, and while there’d probably been other opportunities to sleep with someone if he’d really wanted to, Thomas never had. Being here with Newt, now, he couldn’t help but feel vulnerable. But he also felt safe. This was Newt. He could trust Newt with this.

He could trust Newt with anything.

Newt wrapped a hand around the base of Thomas’ cock and ran his tongue over the tip. He then licked down to the point where his hand was, and back up again.

Thomas whimpered, and immediately clamped a hand over his mouth to silence it. Newt reached up with his free hand, pulled Thomas’ arm away, and lay it down on the bed. “Let me hear you,” he said, as he curled his fingers together with Thomas’.

Thomas gripped Newt’s fingers back tightly with that hand, and pulled part of Newt’s bedsheet into a fist with the other. Newt licked down and up Thomas’ cock again, finishing his movement off with a flick of his tongue against the tip.

Thomas bit his lip in an attempt not to cry out.

Newt sighed against Thomas’ skin. “Tommy...”

“Your sister’s right next door,” said Thomas, internally cringing at how strained his voice sounded.

Newt chuckled and looked up at Thomas through his eyelashes. “I’ve had to deal with _her_ being loud plenty of times. Don’t let that stop you.”

Thomas nodded, and Newt went back to what he’d been doing.

This time, Thomas didn’t hold himself back. He wasn’t proud of the noises he was making, the whimpered moans, the small cries, but he could tell that Newt was enjoying being able to coax them out of him.

Thomas felt Newt’s lips close around the head of his cock. He looked down to see Newt take about half of it into his mouth, and could feel Newt’s tongue running over it as he did so. Thomas watched Newt pull back, so just the head remained in his mouth, before he did it all over again.

It was too much.

“Newt?” he forced out, fighting hard not to thrust up into Newt’s mouth. “I- I think I-”

Newt pulled his mouth off Thomas’ dick with a _pop._ He moved up to kiss Thomas, the hand that he’d had wrapped around the base sliding up and down, offering no reprieve. Thomas could taste salt on Newt’s tongue.

“It’s alright,” Newt mumbled onto his lips. “Let it happen.”

So he did.

When Thomas came back to himself, Newt had brought his other hand up to rest on Thomas’ cheek, and was peppering his brow with tiny kisses. He let out a small laugh when Thomas brought his gaze up to meet his.

Thomas swallowed.

“Good?” said Newt.

“Fuck.”

Newt laughed again. “I’m gonna take that as a yes.”

“You should,” said Thomas as he ran his hands down Newt’s sides. He frowned as his fingers hit fabric. “You’re still wearing underwear.”

“Got a bit distracted before I could take them off.”

“Well that’s not fair.”

Newt tilted his head and smiled. “You’re pouting.”

“Am not.”

“It’s cute.”

“Shut up.”

Newt placed a quick kiss on Thomas’ lips and rose up onto his knees. “Help me take them off now?”

Thomas was more than happy to oblige. He sat up to meet him and pulled the boxers down to Newt’s knees. Newt wriggled the rest of the way out of them and tossed them to the side. Thomas slipped his hand in between them and stroked a finger down Newt’s cock.

Newt gasped.

“I’d better warn you that I have no idea what I’m doing,” said Thomas

“You’re doing fine so far.”

“I’ve barely touched you.”

“If you expect me to believe that you don’t know how to handle a dick, then you must take me for an idiot.”

In retaliation, Thomas wrapped his hand around the base and stroked upwards, stopping once it had reached the tip.

Newt shivered. “Fuck, Tommy.”

Thomas smirked and stroked his hand back down.

Thomas was half convinced that he’d come again just from hearing the sounds that Newt was making. Newt dropped his head onto Thomas’ shoulder, muffling himself somewhat, but Thomas could still feel the vibrations of Newt’s voice against his skin.

He kept going.

Newt’s arms wrapped around him, clutching tight as he shuddered and moaned. Newt was falling apart under Thomas’ touch, and Thomas was loving every second of it.

When Newt’s breath hitched, telling Thomas that he was close, Thomas stopped moving his hand and held it still. Newt made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a sob and lifted his head up. His hair was a complete mess, and his eyes were glassy, heavy lidded, and he was breathing heavily. “Please, Tommy,” he begged. _“Please.”_

Thomas brought his free hand up to the back of Newt’s head and pulled him in, kissing him deeply, exploring his mouth with his tongue. He resumed the actions of his other hand, and swallowed Newt’s cries as he came.

Thomas hugged him close as he shuddered, slowly coming back to himself. Once he had, he slumped in Thomas’ arms.

“Jesus.”

“No, I’m Thomas.”

Newt pushed Thomas back onto the mattress, following him down. “Shut up.”

“Make me.”

The feeling of Newt’s lips on his own didn’t surprise Thomas, not after that exchange, but he still loved it.

When Newt pulled away to breathe, Thomas said, “Good then?”

“Piss off. ‘Course it was.”

Thomas pressed a quick kiss onto Newt’s mouth. “Good.”

“We should probably clean up though?”

Thomas groaned. “Do we have to?”

Newt raised an eyebrow? “Do you _want_ to sleep in this?”

“Fair point,” Thomas sighed.

Newt pushed himself up and got off the bed. Thomas didn’t bother to hide the way he was looking at him. They were way past that point. Newt grabbed a dressing gown from somewhere in the middle of the pile of clothes on the chair, and slipped it on. He turned back to face Thomas and smirked. “You just stay there,” he said, and then quietly left the room.

Thomas did as he was told.

Newt was back before too long, a damp cloth in hand. He climbed back on the bed, sat next to Thomas, and pressed the cloth to Thomas’ skin. It was warm, and Thomas relaxed into the touch. Newt gently wiped away all trace of what they had done, finishing just as the cloth began to feel cold, all of its heat having been lost.

Newt dropped the cloth to the ground by the side of the bed. “D’ya want the clothes back, or?”

“What about you? Don’t you need-”

“I cleaned up already.” Newt smiled. “So, clothes?”

“I can’t really be bothered to move right now, to be honest.”

Newt shrugged. “Fair enough.” He pulled the dressing gown off, threw it back in the general direction of the chair-of-clothes, and flopped down beside Thomas. He pulled the duvet up over them both.

“G’night Tommy,” he said, yawning.

Thomas hummed. “Night Newt.”

 

When Thomas woke up, it took a couple of seconds for him to remember everything.

Where he was.

Who he was with.

What had happened between them.

He turned his head to see that Newt was still asleep. No, not quite. Newt scrunched up his nose as he blinked his eyes open. It was kinda adorable.

Okay, it was very adorable.

“Hey,” said Thomas.

“Hi,” responded Newt. He blinked a couple more times, and said, “What’s the time?”

“No idea. I don’t think it’s that late, though.”

Newt hummed and rolled onto his back. “You can use the shower if you like.”

“That sounds like a good idea, thanks.”

Thomas dragged himself out of bed and crossed over to the pile of his things behind the door. He gathered them all up and opened the door. Realising that he was still naked, he sprinted across the hall to the bathroom, ignoring Newt’s laughter from behind him.

After a quick shower, Thomas dressed himself in the clothes he’d worn the night before, telling himself that he’d get changed properly when he got home. Once he deemed himself dry enough, he opened the bathroom door.

And nearly walked right into Harriet.

“Sorry!” he said, jumping backwards.

She scowled. “Watch where you’re going.”

Thomas opened his mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the sound of a door closing and footsteps approaching.

“Babe?”

Sonya came into view. She froze for a moment when she saw Thomas standing in the doorway, but relaxed just as quickly. “Hi Thomas,” she said, a bright smile on her face. “How are things? You good?”

Harriet rolled her eyes. “I don’t understand how you can be so open to him after-”

Sonya put a hand on Harriet’s shoulder, silencing her. “Newt’s still able to look _you_ in the eye, isn’t he? It’s not that hard for us to-”

“Excuse me,” said Thomas, stepping forwards. He did _not_ want to hear any more of this.

Sonya seemed to understand. Laughing, she pulled her girlfriend out of the way and let Thomas pass. Thomas didn’t stop walking until he had the door of Newt’s room closed firmly behind him.

Newt, who’d put on a pair of jeans by this point, turned to face him. “You okay?”

“I’ve been laughed at by both Ross siblings and it’s not even 10 am yet.”

“Meet Sonya out in the hall, did you?”

“And Harriet.”

Newt winced, but then grinned. “Was she unhappy?”

“Very.”

“Hope you don’t mind being used as payback there.”

Thomas chuckled. “No, it’s fine.”

Newt grabbed a t-shirt and said, “Do you want some food before you head home?”

Thomas thought for a moment, then nodded. “That’d be great.”

Newt put the t-shirt on, before leading Thomas out of his room and down the stairs.

Thomas got the distinct feeling that the mess left after the party could’ve been a lot worse. True, there were cups everywhere, a few puddles of spilled drinks, and a few items of clothing (jackets and the like) left around, but the house hadn’t been trashed or anything. As far as Thomas could see, nothing was broken, and as far as he could tell, nothing was missing.

Newt surveyed the room with a sigh. “Sonya had better help clean this up.”

“She should,” agreed Thomas. “It was _her_ party after all.”

The boys walked through to the kitchen. Thomas stopped a few paces from the door, having spotted something strange out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see a foot sticking out from behind a sofa.

“Newt,” he said.

“Yes?”

“Come look at this.”

“What is i- Oh,” said Newt as he turned around. He walked closer and peered around the back to see who it was.

“Winston,” he said sternly.

Thomas heard a vaguely zombie-like groan come from behind the sofa.

Newt shook his head and reached an arm down, pulling Winston to his feet. “C’mon mate,” he said, “I’ll get you some painkillers or something.”

Winston groaned again, clutching his head. Newt steered him into the kitchen, shooting an apologetic look back at Thomas. Thomas followed them in.

Newt sat Winston in a chair next to a small table in the corner of the kitchen and opened a nearby cupboard. He pulled out a packet of coffee. “Tommy,” he said, “the painkillers are in that cupboard over there.” He pointed across the room. “Could you grab some for this buggin’ moron please?”

“Sure.”

Once Winston had taken the painkillers and had been given a large mug of coffee to nurse, Newt turned back to Thomas. “Sorry about that,” he said.

“It’s fine, don’t worry.”

They made themselves some toast and decided to sit back out in the living room to eat it.

(They figured that Winston didn’t need constant supervision. If he passed out then they’d hear his head hitting the table)

“So,” said Newt. “Where does this leave us?”

Thomas tried to take advantage of the fact that he was still chewing to buy himself time to think up a response, but by the time he’d swallowed his mouthful he still didn’t have one. “I don’t know,” he said.

“I’m open to whatever you want,” said Newt. “If you want to pretend it didn’t happen, then fine. If you don’t then...” he trailed off, took a deep breath, and said, “Then I’m okay with that too.”

Thomas didn’t know what he wanted.

He liked Newt. There was no way he could deny that. He couldn’t pass off their actions the night before as being simply because of the alcohol (because neither of them had had enough for that) or the proximity (because that was a terrible excuse just in general) or anything other than what it had been. Which was that they had both wanted it.

But going forwards?

“I think I need some time,” said Thomas.

Newt nodded. “Okay,” he said, “I get that.”

“Just to think, you know? Sort my head out.”

“Totally understandable.”

“I’ll call you, though. Whichever, or whatever, or...” He sighed. “Words aren’t working, point is, I’ll call you.”

Newt smiled. “Okay Tommy.”

 

Thomas didn’t call Newt that day. Or that week.

He meant to, he really did. But things kept coming up. He was busy. He didn’t have time.

But also, the more time passed, the more doubts he started to have about what had happened, and what he’d felt.

He _had_ been drinking, after all. Admittedly not much, but even a little could easily be enough to trick the mind. If Thomas were to see Newt again, but during the day and while completely sober, he couldn’t say for sure whether or not he’d still be genuinely attracted to him.

And even then, Thomas knew that whenever he liked someone, it didn’t last long. Newt had been his best friend, once upon a time, and Thomas still cared about him. The last thing that Thomas wanted to do was hurt him. So if he told Newt that yes, he did actually like him, and yes, they could become official, all that would happen was that Thomas’ feelings would fade within a month. Then they’d have to deal with _that_ situation.

It was best not to give it a chance to get to that point.

So days turned to weeks and Thomas didn’t call.

He didn’t see Newt around town.

He didn’t see anyone from school.

He’d wanted a clean break. He’d wanted that party to be a symbolic goodbye to this part of his life.

He wasn’t going to change his mind now.

 

**Author's Note:**

> as i was writing this, i sent the doc to my gf for support and help, which she very graciously gave despite not being in this fandom at all. she also wrote a handful of alternate endings when i got stuck, and she said i could share them here:
> 
>  
> 
> “What are these whimpering noises I hear, are you alright Newtieeeeeeee????????” Newt’s mum shouted as she ran into the room. “Oh my god, there’s a boy in your bed! A boy other than you! Oh okay it’s thomas he’s cool, carry on wrestling like Real Macho Men, I’ll leave you be!”  
> Newt and Thomas began to cry. They cried until they fell asleep.  
> The next morning, Newt woke up and Thomas was gone.  
> I’ll call you said the note.  
> But Newt didn’t own a telephone :(  
> The End.
> 
> “Let’s go back to my room again,” said Newt  
> “Okay sure,” said Thomas  
> So they did  
> More the same happened  
> More of more happened ;)  
> The end :)
> 
> “I don’t want to forget it happened,” said Thomas, reaching for a sticky note and a pen he saw on a shelf. “Here’s my number, maybe we can plan a time to go for a coffee?” he said has he scribbled down a number. “I should go home now, but feel free to call me sometime ;)”  
> “The sooner the better,” he added.
> 
>  
> 
> feel free to pick one of these alternate endings if you like hahaha
> 
> you can find my tumblr [here](https://astralpenguin.tumblr.com/)
> 
> kudos and comments are greatly appreciated !!! thank you so much for reading !!!


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